


Recordslayer

by hiswitcherr (teddybards), teddybards



Category: Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Jaskier | Dandelion Loves Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia, M/M, Modern AU, Slow Build
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-17
Updated: 2021-01-19
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:28:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,732
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26515987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/teddybards/pseuds/hiswitcherr, https://archiveofourown.org/users/teddybards/pseuds/teddybards
Summary: In this world, everything is the same as modern day, but there are monsters that need killing. Geralt has been hunting them ever since he dropped out of high school - earning money slaying monsters was better than trying to earn a diploma. Living out of his car and never really settling down for long all his life, the slayer’s status quo gets shaken when his arm gets broken badly on a hunt and he has to wait it out by recovering for a few weeks in the city. While brooding in a bar one night, he meets Jaskier, a rising musician who performs in bars and clubs by night, and works part time at a record / music shop by day. The musician shows his new companion around the city while he’s staying there, in exchange for hearing about monsters and slayer life. By the time Geralt’s arm has healed, he doesn’t want to leave the city and Jaskier doesn’t want to leave his side.
Relationships: Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier | Dandelion
Comments: 3
Kudos: 30





	1. Circumstances

**Author's Note:**

> Each chapter has one or two songs that I love that have inspired it - usually incorporated as songs Jaskier performs or that the characters hear others perform live or on the radio. 
> 
> This chapter's song: Classy Girl - The Lumineers

Different people living in the same realm can come from entirely different...worlds. In this realm, there are two very separate worlds to the people living in it. The Wild: the vast expanse of nature and ruins outside civilization hasn't been a problem since the building of the walls two thousand years ago. And of course: society; fortress towns and walled cities to keep the Wild out and the People inside.

Two thousand years ago, a great celestial event happened called the Conjunction of the Spheres. It birthed magic and monsters into the realm, created non-human races, and caused a general upheaval of the status quo. With monsters ravaging the lands, sorcerers (those who became learned in the new magic) created a solution. They started a new race: Witchers. 

These Witchers, mutated with magic and science combined, to become the perfect monster-hunting machines. Some say that in The Wild, there are still Witchers being created, and hunting monsters like they always have. Few ever leave the cities' walls anymore - after all, what could you need that you can't find in New Novigrad?

One thing you can find a lot of in New Novigrad was noise. The city's sounds were nonstop, from the busy city streets to the music pouring from clubs and bars. Contributing humbly to the sound tonight was an up-and-coming musician by the name of Jaskier. 

The young man played mostly covers of indie-folk songs, with a few originals sprinkled in here and there. If you asked him for an honest answer, Jaskier would tell you he hadn't found his big inspiration yet. And that was true - no big breakthrough... yet.

His set for the night was ending, one last Lumineers cover requested by an acquaintance at Goldie's Tap & Grill. For the most part, the crowd had emptied, and the musician was going to follow them after a quick beer of his own.

Jaskier was halfway through the song when a strikingly unfamiliar face entered.

_So later on, the crowd calmed down,  
And I believe it was as if  
Something drew me closer to her... _

The new face was a large man, almost huge, thought Jaskier, and very well muscled. 

_So picture my surprise when I had  
Tried to lean in for a kiss,  
And she just smiled and turned her head down..._

He wore black jeans and a tight black t-shirt showing off every sculpted muscle.

_I asked her why, and she replied,  
It was nothing I was doing wrong,  
It's just what it is..._

His long, silver (very trendy) hair was tied in a messy bun at the back of his head. 

_But classy girls,  
don't kiss in bars like this..._

The man's right arm was also held fast in a cast and sling, also black. 

_No classy girls don't kiss in bars,  
Boys will break their backs and hearts.  
But it's all right,  
The hardest part is through..._

Jaskier wondered if the hunk had been hurt in a fight of some kind. And as he belted out the last line, he made up his mind to talk to that gorgeous man and find out. Saying his thanks to the crowd and packing his guitar into its case, the musician exited the stage to solve his new mystery.

The silver-haired hunk had ordered himself a beer and gone to sit in the most secluded corner of the bar when Jaskier found him, scowling and looking exhausted. 

"I love how you just sit in the corner and brood."

The man just hummed in response, almost a growl. Jaskier was undeterred, so he sat across from him.

"So, you must be in a gang or something, right? That big scar on your face, mean look, the cast-- someone broke your arm in a fight? Should I see the other guy?"

Jaskier stopped his rambling and caught himself, remembering manners all of a sudden. 

"I'm Jaskier, by the way - or, that's my stage name. It's technically Julian. Call me either." He extended his hand to the now somewhat bewildered stranger sitting before him.

"Geralt." He said simply, shaking Jaskier's hand. "And... wasn't a human that broke my arm."

Jaskier was baffled, intrigued. "Go on, what was it?"

"A griffin." Geralt swallowed a mouthful of beer. "I'm a witcher."

Jaskier burst out laughing, genuine tears coming to his eyes. He ordered himself a beer too.

"Geralt, man, I wanna believe you-"

"You should." Geralt looked severe, despite a dazed look coming into his eyes. Which were...

"You have... yellow eyes," Jaskier commented, trying not to let the smitten fascination with the stranger leak into his voice. He took a long drink.

Witchers in the old stories had yellow eyes with cat-like pupils. So did Geralt.

"Wow. I can't believe it."

"Youu... should..." Geralt was struggling to stay upright all of a sudden, and Jaskier was worried.

"Hey, are you okay? Wait... did you just break your arm today?"

The silver-haired man nodded.

"Oh my God, you drank beer on the pain meds they gave you?"

Jaskier didn't need a response. He crossed to the booth seat where Geralt was leaning heavily, trying to keep his eyes open. He looked into the man's face and spoke.

"Hey, look at me, do you have a place to stay?" Jaskier asked, heart pounding with anticipation. Geralt's frown and a shake of his head gave the younger man his answer. "Alright, come crash at my place, okay? It's not very far away, but we gotta walk there."

"Hmm... sure?" Geralt responded, clumsily trying to get out of the booth. Jaskier quickly got up and slung the man's uninjured arm over his shoulders. Beers abandoned, the two made their slow, drowsy way down the block and around the corner to the musician's apartment.

"Needle's Records! Here we are, home sweet work and home," Jaskier announced as he propped Geralt against the wall to get his keys. The door unlocked and open; the two of them faced a narrow set of stairs up into the apartment above the music store. 

"So, I work here most days, live upstairs, and play at the bars and clubs around at night. Pretty cool, honestly." Jaskier explained, ten turned to the groggy man leaning on the bricks. "Think you can make it up the stairs?"

"Yeah," Geralt mumbled. The fresh air had done him some good, but the painkillers were working hard to knock him out completely.

After a couple of stumbles and likely bruised shins, Geralt was in Jaskier's apartment. The bard could hardly believe he was doing this, but it's not like he had any harmful intentions. Or dirty ones, like with some of the guests he brought up here. He even let Geralt take his bed for the night. Just for tonight.

Jaskier woke up the next morning from his sleep on the couch with a sore neck and scribbled a quick note to his guest before getting dressed and running downstairs to open Needle's for the day.


	2. Upside Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Geralt wakes up in Jaskier's apartment and pieces together the previous day, taking in his surroundings, and figuring out what he's going to do now that he is stuck in the city.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Each chapter has one or two songs that I love that have inspired it.
> 
> This chapter's song: Chateau Lobby #4 (in C for Two Virgins) - Father John Misty

Geralt woke up to his broken arm's throbbing pain and the sight of an unfamiliar ceiling above him. He sat up slowly, yawning, and noticed he'd slept in someone's queen-sized bed last night. Last night...

The Witcher remembered the previous day through a haze of pain. He recalled the white hospital walls and overwhelming, sterile smells of the dreaded trip he'd taken, cradling his crushed arm and staggering into the ER. He remembered getting his arm splinted and cast, getting that stupid sling. Geralt knew the doctor's orders, "Stay put for at least six weeks, no driving, no... working, whatever that may be." The Witcher said he'd broken his arm at his job-- didn't say it was a Griffin hunting job. After clumsily navigating his car to one of the only free parking lots in the city and downing some of his newly prescribed pain meds, Geralt had walked grumpily in the direction of the first place he could get a drink.

It was after the drinking that things got really blurry for the white-haired man. He only had one drink, but with the meds? He struggled to keep his head up as the most obnoxiously adorable little twink bounced over and started babbling to him. Before he knew it, Geralt was opening up a bit to this Jaskier. And losing his faculties. He had short memories of leaning on the smaller man, walking some distance and barely getting himself up some stairs. Then, nothing.

And now he was awake, in pain, and in Jaskier's apartment. Glad to have chucked his leather jacket off before passing out for the night, Geralt found it next to the bed beside his boots and retrieved the painkillers bottle from one of the jacket pockets. With his right arm in a sling and held firm against his chest, it was a small struggle to get the pills out of the bottle. Geralt was grateful that his host seemed nowhere to be found.

The Witcher rose and padded in sock feet through the bedroom and took in his surroundings. The building must be well over a hundred years old, with some exposed brick along one wall where the apartment's tall windows faced the street. The bedroom walls were greyish blue and covered in band posters. Jaskier's bed was situated opposite the tall windows in his room, and the bedding was in a deep dark blue. A large wardrobe stood against one wall, and a chest of drawers opposite that, next to the bedroom door - an open archway with a blue star patterned curtain leading to a small hallway and the rest of the apartment. 

Geralt opened the curtain and left the cozy blue, grey and brick of his host's room, searching for the bathroom. He found it on the left and took a moment to swallow his painkillers with a mouthful of water from the tap. He looked up and caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror. His long white hair was barely pulled back in a half ponytail, so he just took out the elastic. Letting his hair fall around his shoulders was better than trying to tie back with one hand. He sighed, taking in his appearance as entirely tired and unappealing, and walked out to the rest of Jaskier's apartment.

The open kitchen and living space were covered in posters depicting tour dates from concerts, pictures of bands and musicians, festival line ups, and even some pin-ups. The place was cluttered up with everything Jaskier loved, clearly, and a radio was playing softly from the kitchen counter. A large desk was set up as a writing and recording space along one wall in the living room, with a TV on the other. A large sectional floated in between, and there were a couple of stools at the kitchen counter for dining. There were a pillow and blanket set up on the couch as if - of course, Jaskier had given up his bed for Geralt and taken the couch. Something in the Witcher's chest fluttered at that. Geralt had never had an apartment of his own, preferring to live out of his car and stay in motels between hunts, but he had to admit this place was nice.

But he still felt out of place. Geralt's whole world was turned upside down when the Griffin crushed his arm in its talons. Yes, the Witcher defeated the beast in the end, but this whole inability to hunt and 'staying put' business was foreign to the white-haired monster hunter.

Geralt sighed and walked into the kitchen, where he found a note-

I'm at work downstairs.  
Stay as long as you like  
x J

The Witcher couldn't help but let a small smile onto his face at that. Maybe this guy's different; maybe he's someone to keep around. Geralt would just have to wait and see. Something in his chest fluttered as he returned to the bedroom for his boots and jacket. Boots on, and jacket in hand, the Witcher made his way out of Jaskier's apartment and downstairs to the young man's place of work - Needles, the record shop slash performance space. 

Jaskier's head whipped up as soon as Geralt entered, blue eyes sparkling. 

"So, you found my note! How are you feeling?" he asked as the Witcher went to lean on the counter behind which the musician sat. 

Before he could really answer, Geralt's stomach growled. He hadn't eaten since the day before, before the fateful Griffin hunt. 

"Hungry," he confessed. "Thank you, by the way. For, um, letting me stay."

Geralt couldn't meet Jaskier's eyes, though his thanks were sincere.

"I wasn't just going to let you pass out down there and get taken advantage of!" Jaskier responded. "And... why don't you let me take you out for lunch? I'm done here in half an hour..."

The musician smiled flirtatiously up at Geralt, and the white-haired man felt that fluttering in his chest again.

"Alright, sure, but I don't know my way around. I'm not, uh, from here." I'm not from anywhere, Geralt thought.

"Oh, that's alright," Jaskier hit the other man playfully on the arm. "I know this city like the back of my hand. If you're new - and thinking of staying - why don't I show you around? It'd be my pleasure."

Geralt chuckled and wondered to himself, what was he getting into now? And did he just say yes to a lunch date with this man...?

Later that night, the two of them sat in Jaskier's apartment and came to an agreement. If Geralt had no place to stay in the city, he could crash with Jaskier until his arm healed, but only if the Witcher would share his stories with the musician. 

"I haven't had my big breakthrough yet, but monster-hunting makes for some great songs, I should think."

And Geralt simply found himself unable to argue, stuck on that fluttering feeling in his chest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks everyone for your patience with this story -- i have it all written in point form but the typing out and posting always seem to get away from me. My school semester ends in less than two weeks and you can expect more updates from me once school isn't in the way <3


	3. Making Waves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It had only been three days since Geralt's arrival in the city, and he had already been faced with more courtesy and kindness and hospitality from one person than he had from all the strangers he'd ever met before. He couldn't deny enjoying Jaskier's company, which was a surprise since the man was almost annoyingly sunshiney and so different than the kind of people Geralt was used to being around.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Each chapter has one or two songs that I love that have inspired it.
> 
> This chapter's song: Running - The Whitest Boy Alive
> 
> Also I decided that the city is Novigrad but in modern verse let's just call it NG. like NYC I guess?

It had been three days since Geralt's arrival in the city. Three days of crashing with his new friend Jaskier, the over-generous and flirty musician. The two of them had come to an agreement and fallen into some tentative routines. With Jaskier working most weekdays at Needles, Geralt would hang out in the back of the shop and wait or hang out in his host's apartment upstairs. He much preferred the shadowy corner of Needles to sit and scroll through sites on his phone than an empty apartment belonging to someone still practically a stranger. 

The monster hunter tried his best to avoid looking for contract work that would take him back to the Wild. Despite the sling and cast on his arm, he was stubborn and wanted to find something to fill his time. He couldn't expect Jaskier to want him around for the entire summer while the broken limb healed.

Geralt was sitting in a comfy chair in the record store's alternative section while Jaskier stayed at the counter. A group of young rainbow-haired punks suddenly brought the Witcher's attention away from his phone. They must have been regulars to the shop, none older than 20, and all were speaking excitedly to Jaskier.

"So, is it true?" began a short girl with a green undercut. "That goth dude in the back is, like, your new boyfriend?"

Geralt couldn't see Jaskier behind the crowd at the counter but knew the man would be blushing. Hell, he was too. Boyfriend. Something Geralt never thought he would never be or have. Who would want a freak like him as a boyfriend? The word mortified him, but something was tugging at his heart again. He ignored it and kept listening.

"You mean Geralt? He's not," Jaskier fumbled. "He's not my boyfriend; he's a new friend who's staying with me and taking in the sights of the city."

"Is he single then?" asked a tall young man with pink hair. The group burst into a fit of giggles at that, and a couple of them looked over at Geralt for a quick second before turning away. 

The Witcher looked down, embarrassed about feeling embarrassed by that interaction. A new friend, the young man had said. The monster hunter didn't have many friends, he thought to himself in that comfy chair, aside from his brothers.

Oh shit, I should text them what's going on with me, Geralt thought and quickly wrote out a message to his group chat with Lambert and Eskel.

_a griffin broke my arm, stuck in NG til it heals up. no hunts till then._

He sighed and went back to his near-meditative thinking while Jaskier chattered on with his friends at the counter. He listened to the words of the song playing over the radio.

_So many people telling me one way,  
So many people telling me to stay,  
Never time to have my mind made up,  
Caught in the motions, and I don't stop._

The Witcher was accustomed to his life being one way: the way of being on the road, being alone, killing horrors, and earning barely enough to keep himself afloat in the Wild. Now, though, he was stuck. Things were different and were going to be different for the foreseeable future. Geralt cursed the dead Griffin that broke his arm and got him stuck here. But on the other hand, he thought, maybe things being different could be better. 

It had only been three days since Geralt's arrival in the city, and he had already been faced with more courtesy and kindness and hospitality from one person than he had from all the strangers he'd ever met before. He couldn't deny enjoying Jaskier's company, which was a surprise since the man was almost annoyingly sunshiney and so different than the kind of people Geralt was used to being around.

As the crowd of brightly coloured punks left the store, Jaskier made his way to the alternative section and Geralt.

"Rita's coming in soon to take over; what did you wanna do for lunch today?" he asked, smiling and hoping the other hadn't overheard his colourful friend's questions before.

Geralt looked up at Jaskier and felt that weird fluttering in his chest again. He thought for a moment before responding.

"I should say thank you for letting me stay these last few days. If you know someplace not too expensive, I mean, um, why don't I treat you this time?"

If Geralt was to be friends with Jaskier, he knew he'd have to put in some real effort. Treating him to lunch would be a start.

Jaskier's eyes were sparkling.

"Geralt, why didn't you tell me you were so sweet?" The feeling in the Witcher's chest fluttered more at the young man's flattery. "Once Rita gets here, we can get ready and I'll take you to this awesome dumpling place, and you can treat me."

"Sure," Geralt couldn't help but smile.


	4. Almost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It had been a week since Geralt started staying with Jaskier, and the witcher's plans of keeping things platonic between them were dissolving. Jaskier was a flirtatious character, that much Geralt knew, but something was different about how he playfully teased the witcher. And there was always that damned fluttering in his chest whenever the musician spoke to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Each chapter has one or two songs that I love that have inspired it -
> 
> This chapter's song: Almost (Sweet Music) - Hozier

It had been a week since Geralt started staying with Jaskier, and the witcher's plans of keeping things platonic between them were dissolving. Jaskier was a flirtatious character, that much Geralt knew, but something was different about how he playfully teased the witcher. And there was always that damned fluttering in his chest whenever the musician spoke to him.

Last night, they fell asleep on the couch together.

After dinner, they had been watching crap TV and had been swapping stories for hours. Geralt spoke of his hunts and adventures, and Jaskier of his antics with friends around NG. Before they knew it, both of them had fallen asleep. Now, at 6:33 am (according to Geralt's phone), the witcher was sore and needed more painkillers for his arm. But he found himself rather tangled up and unable to move.

Sprawled out at the other end of the couch was Jaskier, his legs tangled with Geralt's. In the morning light filtering in through the curtains, the witcher couldn't resist admiring the younger man's beauty. He wore a white t-shirt and blue shorts, both riding up to reveal more skin, more hair, more places for Geralt's eyes to linger. His yellow gaze slowly took in every inch of the sleeping Jaskier, and he dared not move and disturb the serenity. 

It was undeniable now what that fluttering in Geralt's chest was when Jaskier spoke. 

_Fuck._ Geralt thought. _I have feelings for him._

Having never really felt like this about anyone before, let alone someone he had met only a week ago, the tough monster hunter's strength started to crack into a fit of panic. 

As carefully and quickly as he could, Geralt extracted himself from the peaceful, sleepy tangle on the couch. Heart pounding, he headed for the bathroom. He didn't mean to slam the door, but, whoops, he did. The sound would wake Jaskier.

Geralt locked the door and sat on the bathroom counter, and just tried to calm down. _Holy shit, is this happening? He doesn't feel the same way, does he? But he keeps flirting... and he's so generous. So damn nice. And so beautiful._

Jaskier was waking up on the couch and frowned at the lack of Geralt on the other end of it. Something must be up if he slammed the door like that. 

"Geralt, you alright?" he called in the direction of the bathroom, yawning.

"Fine, didn't mean to slam the door," came Geralt's response after a moment. 

When he came out of the bathroom, Jaskier was in the kitchen making coffee. Geralt sat at the kitchen bar and willed his heart to stop beating so hard. Why was having these feelings so scary? He could just keep them a secret. Or find someplace else to stay.

"There you are," Jaskier was sliding a mug of coffee over to Geralt before even getting one for himself.

The witcher's chest fluttered. There was definitely no place else Geralt could stay and no place where he would be so well looked after. 

_Don't ruin this on me,_ Geralt tells his pounding heart. _Just wait until the time is right to tell him. Or don't tell him at all._

Jaskier wasn't working that day, and Geralt knew that meant they'd be spending the whole day together at the apartment for the first time since he'd arrived in the city. The witcher looked outside and saw dark storm clouds on the horizon. As he sipped his coffee, he wondered how long he could keep that fluttering feeling of affection down.


End file.
